Frau Totenkinder
Frau Totenkinder, also known as The Black Forest Witch, but whose first name was Bellflower, is a powerful member of the 13th Floor in Fabletown. She is an old rival of Baba Yaga and the Fairy Godmother, as well as the Adversary. Biography Before Exodus Frau Totenkinder was born into the Fog Mountain tribe and grew up into a beautiful young woman, apparently during the Paleolithic era. Once she reached puberty around the age of fourteen, she began to experience premonitions, initially weak, but growing in strength and accuracy, until the tribe made her their shaman. She became romantically involved with Aurac, the son of the tribe's chief who expected to marry her, until another nearby tribe invaded their lands. To avert war, the chief's son was married to the daughter of the other chief, leaving the newly pregnant Totenkinder alone. If it had become known that the two had slept together, both would have been cast out, so Aurac denounced her, accusing her of consorting with demons, which led to her lone banishment from the tribe. Realizing that she would need far greater power than she currently possessed in order to survive, Totenkinder ritually sacrificed her newborn son and was granted considerable power, which she partly used to take revenge on Aurac. She learned that, while sacrificing one child a year would keep her power, sacrificing two would prevent her from aging. Years passed as she heaped every indignity imaginable on the tribe that cast her out; ages passed and she remained unchanged, growing only in power and cunning. Becoming a powerful witch, she assisted those who were kind to her, creating the three Billy Goats Gruff to eliminate a bridge troll that was causing problems for a village that won her favor, and blessing those who she felt worthy. She took her revenge on the town of Hamelin by giving away an enchanted flute that was used to lure away their children. Prompted by her experience with Aurac, she waged her own private war against handsome princes and men of wealth and privilege, during which she was responsible for the curses on Lord Beast and Prince Ambrose. In order to stem her own physical desires, she allowed herself to age considerably. At some point Totenkinder purchased a girl named Rapunzel in exchange for a handful of gold. Making the girl her apprentice, Totenkinder shut Rapunzel away in a tower and at some point cursed Rapunzel's hair to rapidly grow. Eventually Rapunzel begun a passionate love affair with a prince and this resulted in Rapunzel becoming pregnant. When Totenkinder found out, she threw Rapunzel out. Soon after this and finally tiring of dealing with others, she retired to a cottage deep in the woods, interacting with others only when a child passed, when she would dress up her house with sweets to lure them in to be sacrificed to keep her power. After a few years since her last child-sacrifice, she encountered Hansel and Gretel, who outsmarted her and burned her in her own oven. During Exodus Surviving in horrific condition, she was eventually rescued by Snow White and Rose Red , running from the Adversary's forces. The two nursed her back to health, while she used her power to temporarily drive away the Adversary's forces and prevent them from disturbing her recovery. While she healed herself, Totenkinder revealed her life story to the two girls and while Rose grew to to respect her for her tale, Snow was now horrified of Totenkinder. While Snow wanted go leave Totenkinder before she grew strong enough to harm them, Rose convinced her otherwise and, telling her about the mundane world, Snow and Rose attempted to help her reach it, covering a considerable distance with her. However, they became separated while traveling and exactly how or when Totenkinder ultimately reached the mundane world is unknown."Diaspora". First published in Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (October 2006). After Exodus During the Invasion of the Wooden Soldiers she clashed in a duel with Baba Yaga, defeating and imprisoning her in the Business Office. She later became vital during the incident with the Arabian Fables, helping to recapture the unleashed D'jinn. She continued to assist Fabletown with their needs until the moment Mister Dark attacked. Having decided that the duel with the creature would be her last service, she rejuvenated herself (taking the name of Bellflower'')' and traveled to the Homelands to find a way to stop him. There she found Dunster Happ, the sorcerer who had imprisoned ("boxed") him the first time, and requested his help. Although he declined, Bellflower remained with him, the two having developed feelings for each other. She returns to The Farm to announce her duel with Mister Dark to everyone there. Her duel takes place in New York city, during which she dispatches his witherlings and destroys all the teeth he has collected, preventing him from summoning them again. Bellflower manages to actually wound him and, with the help of Clara and the other Fables, she is able to trap Mister Dark inside a gold statue. But he manages to escape and mortally wound her, apparently killing her. She didn't die but transported herself back to the Farm where she reincorporated, but having spent all her magic during the duel, she is no longer a match for Mr. Dark. As she had already decided before the battle that it would be her last, she leaves with Dunster. She is seen again in the Homeland of the North, having been recruited by the North Wind to help with his sacrifice in dealing with Dullahan. However, they become trapped there until Winter finds them and brings them back with her. She is seen again as a victim of Goldilocks where she and Dunster are felled by her sword. By Cinderella's doing, she was returned to life at the cost of her lover's. Not long after her resurrection, she returns to The Farm in order to aid Rose Red in stopping Bigby Wolf, who was feral while under the control of Nurse Spratt. Inspired by the knight in golden armor and witch template Beast and Ozma set up to fight Bigby, they confront him and draw their fight with him, as Totenkinder manages to position the fight so that Bigby will be killed by her if he kills Red Rose. She is eventually killed by Cinderella on Snow White's request, as Snow White feared her siding with Rose Red in their upcoming battle. Their fight involves heavy magic on both sides and causes a large explosion, largely ruining the new Fabletown castle. After the explosion, Cinderalla manages to crawl over to a burnt Totenkinder, killing her by stabbing her in the forehead with the glass slipper, before dying herself.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frau_Totenkinder#cite_note-vert-ency-1 Personality Her personality can be a mystery, and she is known by most Fables as an old crone. She often deals with the other Fables, casting spells or providing enchanted items in return for favors. Frau Totenkinder is a schemer who holds her own secrets and plans; she knew the identity of the Adversary long before Boy Blue found out but kept it to herself in order to protect her source. She is manipulative, cunning, and sharp. Her manipulative nature has caused Beast to question her intentions, as her actions mirror that of the Adversary. However, she has a strong loyalty towards Fabletown. She is fond of the community as they have made her feel welcome and accepted, more so than her original tribe. She has helped her community through every crisis. She considers herself in debt to Snow White and Rose Red, who saved her from the oven and took care of her when they could have fled the Adversary's forces more quickly by leaving her behind and, because of this, she is determined to make sure that they win against the Adversary. Powers and Abilities |-|Powers= Frau Totenkinder was said to be one of the most, if not the most, powerful members of Fabletown; as stated by the North Wind himself, she was possibly on the verge of becoming one of the Great Powers - some sort of archetype of Witches.Fables 105 The Wind that Shakes the Worlds]] First published in (July 2011). In the Homelands she was known for cooking and eating children, however her power is derived through ritual child sacrifice rather than blood drinking or other acts of cannibalism."Witch's Tale". First published in Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall (October 2006). *'''Immortality: As a Fable, Frau Totenkinder was immortal and very difficult to kill; the degree of a Fable's immortality was apparently dependent on how well known they were to the mundane. Even before her status as a Fable was established, a young Frau Totenkinder learned that by sacrificing two children a year she would not age. While she initially, by choice, appeared to be an old woman, she could use her power to regain and maintain a more youthful appearance. *'Precognition:' According the tale she told to Snow White and Rose Red, Frau Totenkinder began to experience premonitions after turning fourteen. They were weak at first, predicting minor events (i.e. when it would rain), but eventually these visions grew in clarity and accuracy. *'Witchcraft:' Frau Totenkinder was an extremely powerful witch, having garnered much experience over her long life, and is one of the most powerful sorcerers in the comics. At her peak, her power was enough to allow her to hold her own in combat against one of the Great Powers, for which she prepared hundreds of spells tied to trigger words. She was ultimately defeated and her reserves of power were significantly expended; Mr. North claimed she spent more than a millennia accumulating magical power, and that it would take Totenkinder at least another thousand years to even become a shadow of what she once was prior to her duel with Mister Dark. Despite this claim, Totenkinder affirmed prior to her death that this was slight misinformation, and supported this with a large explosion that mortally wounded Cinderella. **'Self-Resurrection:' She was once burned to ashes in her own oven, but was so powerful (and popular among the mundies) that she was able to survive and reconstitute herself. During her confrontation with Baba Yaga she claimed to have been killed several times only to return again. She once more revived herself after being killed by the Dark Man. **'Spell Creation:' Totenkinder has even created spells and is noted to have made the Death Curse the wicked fairy cast upon Briar Rose. **'Cursing:' Frau Totenkinder has cursed several princes in her time. Her spells were normally so powerful that only "the heart's true love" could undo her curses; whether or not this was by her own design is not explicitly stated. Several prominent characters, including Ambrose and Beast, are suggested to owe Totenkinder for their conditions. **'Magical Energy Blasts:' Frau Totenkinder could form and hurl powerful bolts of magical energy. **'Elemental Magic:' Totenkinder has shown the power to ignite fire, coating her blades in sheaths of flame, and had summoned a potent rainstorm during her battle with Baba Yaga. **'Telekinesis:' Frau Totenkinder has been shown moving objects with non-physical magical force (e.g. when she animated thousands of golden coins to entrap the Dark Man). **'Mind Control:' She could cast spells that manipulated or altered the mental facilities of others. Possibly through her spells to affect the mind, she could paralyze her enemies, as seen during her final battle with Cinderella. There were limitations to her abilities though, and her spell on Yusuf was only able to tweak his words within the confines of something he would normally say. **'Shape-Shifting:' As seen in her battle with Baba Yaga and Mister Dark, Totenkinder could change her shape into that of a dragon-like, eldricth abomination. On a more minor scale, she provided Cinderella with a potion to transform her into a mouse. **'Transmutation:' Totenkinder changed one of the daggers thrown at her by Cinderella into leafs, and the other one she turned into a viper.Fables 150 **'Portal Creation:' After rejuvenating her youthful vigor, Totenkinder opened a magical doorway back to the Homelands. When preparing to exchange Tom Taylor for his wizard counterpart, she notably remarked that she had previously made journeys longer than a mere world away, suggesting that she has prior experience creating portals. FrauTotenkinder FireBlast.png FrauTotenkinder Hypnosis.png Bellflowerleaves.png Bellflower Conjuring.png Bellflower Conjuring02.png Bellflower Sweets.png Bellflower transformation.png |-|Abilities= *'Weapon Proficiency:' Frau was adapt in the use of her dual knives in battle, evident during her fight with the Dark One. Her weapons are imbued with magic to harm and potentially kill even Eldricht Abominations. *'Occult Knowledge and Experience:' She was, apparently, the eldest of all of Fabletown's magicians, and has her fair share of experience combating beings of great power (e.g. Djinn, Literals and harbingers of doom such as Mister Dark). |-|Weapons= *'Judgement and Hunger:' Originally presented as a pair of knitting needles, these blades' power was revealed upon Totenkinder reverting to Belleflower. These function both as weapons and wands, as they channel and direct many of her most potent spells. These blades were strong enough to gravely wound Mr.Dark. Judgement was broken during a clash with a feral Bigby. She remarked that with it's destruction half of her remaining power was lost. *'Pathfinder:' Frau Totenkinder describes her bag of knitting materials as being her bag of tricks and seems to function as a receptacle for her spells as she once withdrew a transformation potion from it for Cinderella. It became a small pouch worn on Totenkinder's belt following her reverting to Belleflower. *'The Stronghold:' Frau Totenkinder's rocking chair is revealed to be the seat of her power and its very origins. Originally the stone where she sacrificed her child, it would go on to become the tower that imprisoned Rapunzel and the candy house that lured Hansel and Gretel. Its names include Capture, Refuge, Damnation, Regret, and Burden. This becomes the talisman Totenkinder wears as a necklace following her transformation into Belleflower. Trivia |-|Character Notes= *Frau Totenkinder's name is derived from the German word Kinder, meaning children, as well as tot, which means dead. Frau ''means "Mrs.". This should literally mean "Mrs. Dead Children", but the used grammatical form is wrong.''Totenkinder would be correct, if Willingham used an article: Die '''toten Kinder ("'''the dead children"). Otherwise the correct spelling would be tote Kinder ''or stylistically ''Totekinder. **Her name could etymologically be taken to mean Mrs. Childkiller. |-|Source Material= *Bill Willingham describes Frau Totenkinder as a fusion every unnamed witch in stories, including the ones featured in Hansel and Gretel, Beauty and the Beast, Rapunzel etc. References External Links Category:Characters Category:Fable Category:Magic user Category:Fables Characters Category:Fables Category:Deceased Category:Witch Category:13th Floor Category:Resurrected